WARNING - GOOD NIGHT BEN

[steph2003]

I just received a notice in the mail that Good Night Ben went bankrupt on October 31, 2003. The company had no remaining assets to liquidate & unable to pay its creditors. Unfortunately, I ordered furniture from them back in September & paid 1/2 (over $1,000) of course I'm distraught at the thought of not only not receiving my furniture but also losing my money. Their website is still up but no answer on the phone

[emmiem]

I am so sorry! I ordered from them in 2000 and was so pleased. Thank you for the warning. That happened to me when a clothing store in town closed. However, I was only out $10 in credit memos. Can you contact an attorney? Probably not, that's why they declared bankruptcy.
Emmie

[alandenisefields]

Yes, this is correct.

We urge ANY parent who has ordered from this company and put their deposit on a credit card, to IMMEDIATELY contact their credit card company. In most cases, you can dispute the charge on your card and get a COMPLETE refund. But don't wait---do it today.

Good Night Ben was a victim of Dutailier's new no-net policy. The glider rocker company has cut the knees out from under discounters by preventing them from shipping cross-border. Why? Dutailier wants to protect the profits of its US dealers. So much for free trade!

Sadly, Good Night Ben was a good company and had a decent track record. That said, there is no excuse for them to continue taking orders until the day before they closed. But if you act quickly, most consumers can get a refund immediately.

Alan & Denise Fields
authors, BABY BARGAINS

[steph2003]

Thank you for shedding some light on the situation - it still stings to know I got burned so badly though. I have contacted my credit card company & hopefully will be able to get some if not all my deposit back; however, it is just disappointing that Good Night Ben continued to take orders depsite knowing the financial condition they were in. Not to mention baby is due soon & no furniture!

[Maya Mark]

We are in the same situation with Good Night Ben- Did you get your money back??

[hellokitty1]

Try Target.com if you really need a glider quick. They have many models with free shipping right now. And use the coupon code TDSAVETEN222 to save 10% in addition to free shipping.

[Maya Mark]

How did you get the information that Good Night Ben was a victim of Dutailiner's new no net policy? Do you have any information on how I can contact Good Night Ben directly? They have a large amount of our money and I need to gather as much information as I can for the dispute of the charges-
Thanks in advance-

[alandenisefields]

That was our opinion; another site (rocking-chairs.com) has posted a copy of Dutailier's no net policy:

http://www.rocking-chairs.com/dutailier_internet_policy.htm

Frankly, it shouldn't really matter to the credit card company. Federal consumer protection laws (Fed Reg C) says clearly that a company that charges a credit card but fails to deliver merchandise is breaking the law and the consumer is entitled to a refund. Check the back of your credit card statements to see it in detail!

So, it doesn't matter WHY they went out of biz; that was just our bit of background so folks understand what happened.

No, we don't have any way of contacting the company directly; other than the numbers on their web site which are either disconnected or not answered.

Thanks,
alan & denise

[steph2003]

hellokitty1 - I wish it were just a glider I was in need of! Try a whole set of EG Furniture I ordered...

Maya -

We are in the process of making a claim with our credit card company so only time will tell if we get any money back. I certainly hope so but I'm not holding my breath. I guess I'm concerned the federal consumer protection laws won't apply because it was a Canadian retailer rather than a U.S. retailer.

I know of no way to contact Good Night Ben directly - their website is up but no answer to their phones (of course!) I think your best recourse is to turn it over to your credit card company. That is one lesson I learned in ALWAYS put deposits such as this on a credit card. And only pay the minimum amount required to place the order. I'm so thankful we didn't pay the entire amount yet.

I was able to contact EG Furniture directly as I was curious to where in the process my order was - or if it was ever placed. They put me in touch with a local rep who has been helpful. He confirmed by order was placed but then cancelled when Good Night Ben went out of business. He worked with me & a local retailer to replace the order & hopefully push it through so I don't have to wait another 8-12 weeks for shipment. I'm hoping he makes good on his word! In addition he is actually the Dutailier rep, Dutailier bought EG Furniture - so I'm told. He confirmed Dutailier is cracking down on the shipment of glider from Canadian retailers to individuals in the states. He also said something like Canadian retailers like Good Night Ben have been getting into some trouble not following proper procedures for customs/duties/taxes for shipping to the states. I almost wonder how much longer individuals here will be able to order from Canadian retailers at bargain prices. Just my humble opinion - I certainly am not taking that chance anymore!

[pmd1117]

I also placed an entire furniture order with them end of Sept ($1850) and got the letter. I contacted my credit card (American Express) and am waiting on them and will let you know the results. My baby came early so we immediately ordered from a local store so we could get the furniture ASAP. We are just praying it works out, one option if it doesn't is to contact Bancrupcy Court in London, Ontario and file a claim to their suit which is already made.

[angusmom]

I really am curious in the case of a bankruptcy AND the fact that this company was Canadian if the credit card company will refund the money. Normally the credit card company refunds the money because they are able to chargeback/debit the merchant for the money they have returned to you.

Thus, in this case I wonder. If Good Night Ben is bankrupt and likely all their asseets and bank accounts either frozen or already drained waiting for litigation, the credit card company itself would have to front the money for the refunds, and I don't think they would do that?

I don't know and am not stating any facts. Just sharing some thoughts out loud and hoping that one of Good Night Ben's customers here can let us know how it turns out with their credit card company. I hope it all works out. I can't imagine losing $1000 or more in a situation like this. This also happened to a lot of customers of a USA Baby store in CT when they went out of business. Many had to get in line in bankruptcy court (not sure if they had paid on credit card or not).

[alandenisefields]

Well, the consumer protection laws that govern deposits placed by credit cards have no exceptions for the bankruptcy of the retailer. Many consumers use these rules to get refunds when an airline goes bankrupt, for example.

As for the Canada deal, that might complicate matters---but in the end, should not prevent refunds.

Again, time is of the essence.

Please feel free to post your experiences here with what you hear from your credit card companies.

Thanks again,
alan & denise
authors

[steph2003]

An update to our saga - I'm happy to report our credit card (VISA platinum through Bank One) told us today they would reimburse us the money by crediting our card. What a relief! They said they go after whatever bank loaned Good Night Ben money on that end. I'm not sure exactly how that works among banks but I guess we'll let them battle it out & be grateful we get our money back.

I hope everyone else has as good of an outcome. Now hopefully the local EG Furniture rep will make good on his promise to speed up my order I ended up placing through the local Bellini store.

[alandenisefields]

Great news! If anyone else has updates to report on their efforts to get a refund, do post them here!

alan & denise